Prosecution begins in trial for man who allegedly killed girlfriend

OROVILLE &GT;&GT; The prosecution gave its opening statement and called its first witnesses in the case of an Oroville man charged with allegedly killing his live-in girlfriend in June 2013, as trial began Thursday.

Olabaku Norman Jones Sr., 44 is charged in murder with special allegations in the death of his live-in girlfriend Mary Abby Tucker. Tucker's family was present during the first day of the trial but requested no media contact during the proceedings.

In his opening statement, supervising deputy district attorney Kurt Worley set the scene for the jury by presenting evidence of a non-emergency call to Oroville police that Jones made on the morning of June 22 explaining to dispatch he was "tired" of his girlfriend and wanted to "make it so she doesn't bother me." Jones and Tucker lived together in an apartment on Spencer Avenue in Oroville. The call ended abruptly after dispatch advised Jones to get a restraining order.

Worley said that two days later on June 24 Jones called 9-1-1 emergency around 1:30 a.m. asking for help for his girlfriend, who had fallen in the shower. Evidence presented to the jury throughout the case depicted lacerations to the back of Tucker's head, a piece missing from her left ear and bruising on her arm, lower back and shoulder. Worley said Tucker was pronounced dead on June 26 of anoxic encephalopathy, a lack of oxygen to the brain.

As the evidence was presented, Tucker's family members wiped their tears and comforted one another.

The first witness, Oroville police detective Sabrina Ostberg said she helped with the collection of evidence.

Witness Gina Marr, a dispatcher for Oroville Police, took Jones' call on the night of the incident. On the recording, when Marr asked Jones if Tucker was injured, the call dropped as if Jones hung up. Marr said she called him back. During questioning, Marr said it is not protocol to call people back, but Jones sounded "strange," so she decided to call him back. On the recording, one could hear Marr asking Jones about the situation, but his answers were infrequent. Marr said she transferred Jones' call to a first responder to see if he could get better assistance. Marr said she transferred the call because Jones sounded "strange, he sounded like he was out of breath and struggling." The call was not completed when Jones' call didn't transfer.

Other witnesses included recently retired Oroville fire Capt. John Webber and fire engineer Tyler Woodard who both worked the night of the incident. Webber said when he arrived at the residence it was "totally dark," and he used a flashlight as he was led to the bedroom by a "black man" who met them when they got there. He said when he first arrived, he noticed Tucker lying on the bed naked with her hair wet, a wet towel and pillow behind her head. He also noted she was having difficulty breathing, and they used equipment to help her breathe. He said when he was there "the man," Jones, explained Tucker had a seizure and fell in the shower. He said that during the assessment, Jones walked in and out of the room.

Woodard, who was responsible for the assessment of the patient immediately noticed that Tucker's hair was "soaking wet" and there was a "soaking wet" towel behind her head which didn't seem normal. He said Jones didn't give information as to where he was before Tucker fell and though he said he and Tucker had an argument two hours prior to the fall, he hadn't had any contact with her after the argument. Woodard said he noted her injuries. He said that though he didn't ask, Jones told him "he didn't hit her."

Paramedic John Costa of Oroville stated that when he arrived to the scene and took over patient care, he was guided to the patient by a man he identified as Jones. Unlike previous witnesses, Costa testified that when he arrived, Jones said he helped Tucker after she had allegedly fallen and though she was initially responsive, she became less and less responsive as he assisted her to the bedroom. Previous witnesses stated Jones said he didn't help Tucker to the bed.

Costa said he had seen the defendant once previous to the call on June 24 but then Jones was the patient and had reportedly passed out. By the time Costa arrived to the Spencer Avenue residence, Jones was responsive and there weren't visible injuries.

Sgt. John Sanzone, dispatched to Oroville Hospital the night of the incident, said he witnessed an unresponsive female in a trauma room. He said at first he didn't recognize the woman as Tucker but after receiving more information from hospital staff, he remembered that he once responded to a call at her residence on Spencer Avenue.

Trial proceeds Friday afternoon with witnesses from the state Department of Justice.